Snow Flower (TAEUN)

Blooming Feelings

"We're always looking at the town when it's bustling with visitors and tourists, we forget just how serene this famous town can be too." Naeun couldn't help but agree with him. The stars above ornamented the night sky similarly to how the street lamped glowed the path they were strolling.

Something silvery caught Taemin's attention.

"Hey, isn't that a rosary ring?" he asked, pointing at Naeun's finger.

"Oh, yes. I'm a Catholic." A big smile formed on Taemin's face. he pulled his sleeves to show her a silver bracelet.

I guess we do have more than one thing in common, she thought.

"What's your Christian name?" he asked.

"Marcella. What's yours?"

"Francesco." She giggled - Francesco was a pretty unique name to Naeun. The two started sharing about themselves to each other - their likes and dislikes, favorite sport, favorite food, etc.

"What's your favorite season?" Naeun asked, "Let's say it together on the count of 3."

One, two, three!

"Winter," they said and laughed. Naeun then asked his reason for loving winter. 

"It's the season where I get to do one of my favorite things - skiing - and it was the only season where my family would gather together to go on holidays." He explained how his parents were extremely busy people, so he barely saw them at home. He was also an only child. However, once the winter holidays hit, they would travel all around the world. His mother would make a scrapbook for every trip they had.

"Must be nice," Naeun said, "traveling with your family every year."

"Don't you?" he asked. Naeun shook her head slowly.

"My mother raised us as a single mother. Our parents divorced when my sister and I were still so young. I barely remember my father's face." She told him about the restaurant her mom built which became quite successful and was their main source of income. Their lives got better after it gained recognition, but they remained frugal with their spendings. Naeun and her family would go on short trips to the many islands of Korea, but never out of the country. When Taemin politely asked how she got enrolled in their expensive high school, she simply answered, "Scholarship," which earned her an impressive whistle from Taemin. It wasn't easy to get a scholarship at Gangnam High, much less a full scholarship.

"I love winter because, like you, I get to do one of my favorite things, snowboarding, and it's also a time when my mother's restaurant would close early. We get to spend more time together." Naeun thought of her mother and sister; she missed them so much. "She'd always make a big pot of army stew with a bunch of side dishes, and on Christmas Day, we'd do Secret Santa."

Taemin raised an eyebrow. "Aren't those for kids?"

"Not when you know the right gifts to buy," she winked.

Silence was in the air once again but there was no awkwardness between them. They relished each other's company as they walked back to the hotel. It was then that Naeun spotted another donation box for the Starlight Orphanage. She must've missed it while conversing with Taemin. She caught him approaching the middle-aged woman sitting beside the donation box and dropped a few notes into it. Her heart warmed for the said boy before donating a few cash as well.

"God bless you two," the warm lady said as she smiled at the two teenagers. They gladly returned it before continuing their walk. The memory of L, to Naeun's dismay, resurfaced and she wondered if she should ask Taemin about him. He could know a thing or two about L that no one else might.